Johnny Vegas has been very open about his weight loss battle over the years, after shedding an incredible five stone as a result of overhauling his lifestyle.
The much-loved comedian returns to Channel 4 with his unlikely hit Carry on Glamping in January 2024, alongside his long-suffering PA Bev.
But how did Johnny manage to lose weight? What prompted him to shed the pounds? And was he diagnosed with ADHD?
When did Johnny Vegas’ weight loss journey begin?
Johnny, 53, previously weighed 18 stone when he was at his heaviest. However, he decided to swap his regular fry-ups for healthy options in a bid to change his old ways.
During an appearance on Loose Women, Johnny explained that his new habits were part of a lifestyle overhaul.
I have cut out things, it’s a lifestyle change
The comic said: “I have not done a diet in anyway whatsoever. I have cut out things, it’s a lifestyle change.”
He continued: “Then you can live with it and you don’t feel like you are denying yourself anything – apart from cheese!”
Merseyside-born Johnny also revealed he wanted to be around to see his two children grow up.
It's a far cry from a Thatto Heath fry up….ooh you've changed Vegas.
Apologies fellow tweeters, busy of late and treating our chats like a bacon butty, sadly an all too rare a treat of late x pic.twitter.com/DaxztvBPmK— Johnny Vegas (@JohnnyVegasReal) July 18, 2018
What diet did Johnny Vegas do?
Although Johnny denies following a diet, he has previously given fans a glimpse into his diet on social media. Back in 2018, the comedian shared a picture of his rather healthy-looking breakfast.
The dish consisted of scrambled egg, tomatoes and avocado. Anybody else feeling peckish?
He captioned the post: “It’s a far cry from a Thatto Heath fry up… Ooh you’ve changed Vegas. Apologies fellow tweeters, busy of late and treating our chats like a bacon butty, sadly an all too rare a treat of late.”
But while the star has lost an impressive five stone over the years, he’s careful not to boast about it. He also said on Loose Women: “I am very careful about coming on and celebrating weight loss because it makes other people feel bad.”
Johnny Vegas weight loss: What prompted him to lose weight?
Johnny Vegas decided to tackle his weight after tragically losing his dad to cancer in 2017. The Carry On Glamping star previously opened up about the decision on This Morning.
At the time, he revealed: “If you had a good parent and you miss them, your responsibility then is to hopefully try and be a decent parent to your own children – and be around.
“The big thing is my smoking that I want to stop. But, the last time I stopped, I piled weight on. So I need to get light enough to exercise… It’s taken 15 months of walking past bread, and cheese and everything I love!”
Johnny shares 21-year-old son Michael Pennington Jr with ex-wife Kitty Donnelly. The comic also has nine-year-old Tom with estranged second wife Maia Dunphy.
Comic describes ‘wake up call’ about his weight
Johnny Vegas admits there was another moment that was a “wake-up call” about his weight. The comic was on holiday in Vietnam when his “midriff got stuck” in a tunnel underground.
He said that he was “stuck fast” for around 10 minutes after his “midriff got jammed”. Speaking about the tunnel incident, he said he was in a place called Ha Long Bay in northeast Vietnam on his honeymoon with Maïa Dunphy in 2011.
The network of tunnels – extending hundred of miles underground – were built in the 1940s as protection from French bombers in the French Indochina War between 1946 and 1954.
Johnny said: “Ha Long Bay was spectacular… But I had a bit of a mishap when we visited one of those underground tunnel systems the Viet Cong used to hide in during the Vietnam War. I was told they’d dug a larger tunnel to show Westerners, but I still got wedged in it.
“I got my legs through, but then my midriff jammed – I was there for 10 minutes.”
Speaking in the Travel supplement in The Sunday Times, he said it was a “wake up call” about his weight. He added: “It was a positive thing in the end, though. One of those wake-up call moments about my health.”
Does Johnny Vegas have ADHD?
Johnny Vegas was diagnosed with ADHD at the end of 2022. He was 52 years of age at the time.
Talking to BBC Breakfast at the time, he explained: “A lot of things make sense now.”
He said: “It’s that sense of disorganisation and doing basic tasks. Everybody has an element of it – it’s how strong your filter is, I think.
“When you don’t have a filter at all, very simple things become very time consuming. It’s like, [I’ll say] I’ll shift that cup, and then you have 10 other ideas and you haven’t shifted that cup. And then, three weeks later, that cup’s still there and somebody’s like, why haven’t you shifted that, and it’s become this monumental task and it’s built up.
“It’s just, I suppose, how your brain organises itself. I always knew I was disorganised… But it [the diagnosis] helps make sense of a lot of things at school. I’m just on the verge of learning about it.”
He added that, in some ways, “it’s made me who I am” and wondered whether “that chaos helped me be a better stand-up”.
Johnny Vegas: Carry on Glamping returns with series 2 on Wednesday, January 24, 2024 at 9pm on Channel 4.
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